Synopsis
The novel's narrator, Malone, is dying. He spends his time writing an inventory of his meagre possessions, a description of his condition, and stories about a character who is clearly an aspect of himself. Malone's fictional character, like Malone himself, is in an asylum. Malone cannot keep track of his character's name, and his struggles to tell his character's story can be viewed as a satire on the creative process as well as an attempt to understand the essence of the self.